Remember that scene in the original Jurassic Park when two kids had to hide from a Velociraptor in the kitchen? Just being hunted by predators was a thrilling experience. Imagine they took that scene and then he made a four hour game. When that pops into your head, you can definitely think of the Jurassic World: Aftermath collection. The whole game puts you in these cat-and-mouse scenarios that build a lot of tension, sometimes even a little bit of fear, and it mostly works. has some fun. Emphasis on the word “some”…
Jurassic World: Aftermath was originally released as a VR game, and it’s important to know right away. The gameplay is clearly focused on the person wearing the headset, so the moment-to-moment action is… limited. On Nintendo Switch, the developers are clearly using traditional controllers, so the action can seem stiff at times, but it’s surprisingly doable.
Most of the in-game time is spent solving a series of puzzles while avoiding being cornered. These puzzles range from “pressing the right buttons in the correct order” in Simon Says to carrying objects that make noises. No puzzle was too difficult to figure out. Amazingly, the game mixes it up so you don’t get the same thing over and over again in a row.
Another interesting aspect that I enjoyed was the cat-and-mouse “horror-like” section. You have been hunted by velociraptors throughout your experience, and everything you do alerts them to your presence. Everything you do is very tense. Your job is to complete the puzzle and hide before the raptors find you. A very interesting horror element. Think being chased by enemies in Outlast or being chased by Xenomorphs in Alien: Isolation. Even if the Raptor AI is surprisingly capable, I have to admit that Jurassic World: Aftermath Collection greatly reduces the fear from other experiences. You’ll die and you’ll hear and see them hunting you, but it’s not that scary.
The downside to this gameplay element is that some deaths feel very cheap. It wasn’t that I was in sight of the enemy, nor was it too late to hide. It’s simply because the game decided it should kill me (or maybe it was a bug behind the scenes). Having to redo an entire section or series of puzzles while trying to avoid the cause of death made certain parts of the experience cheaper.
It’s also a gameplay element that happens too often, to the point where it starts to become predictable. When you start working on the puzzle, the raptor is nearby. Raptors are nearby when picking up or touching noisy objects. I think the section is almost done and clarified? Yes, the Raptor is nearby. It all becomes very predictable and allows for variety. Don’t get me wrong, the cat-and-mouse element can be fun. The reason Alien: Isolation works so well is that an entire section (even an entire ship level) has no aliens to fear, hide or run from. You have to do something different to de-stress. It’s not a long game, but Jurassic World: Aftermath Collection feels like it lingers after hours.
Jurassic World: Aftermath Collection is a decent experience for anyone looking for a cat-and-mouse horror-like game set in the Jurassic Park universe. It does a decent job of building tension with its gameplay, amazingly capable Raptor AI, and unique ability to switch between puzzles. That said, death can feel very cheap, especially if the game lets you die for reasons you don’t understand (I’m telling you, I was totally on that desk before that raptor showed up). It’s also been a bit too long and doesn’t change things enough, which makes the experience very predictable. Provides complex time.
